When Are Rappers Gonna Realize That Making Music With Substance Pays Off More?

[PhonZhi]

Out of all the microwaveable, carbon-copied trash being shoved down our throat, Kendrick Lamar and J-Cole are at the top of the list when it comes to actually.......selling.

When it comes to people willing to go out and spend their hard earned money on music, they do it a higher pace for 2 of the rappers who make music with actual substance.

The thing that separates these 2 rappers and others like them is that they aren't afraid of being THEMSELVES. They are relatable. They aren't bigger than life. They aren't a caricature. They aren't an exaggeration. They are human.

Like Cole said on "Let Nas Down":

they just study the charts/
Me, I study the shows, the fans, I study their hearts



It trips me out when I hear a song by a new artist bragging about his whips, money and jewelry. We all know that its all . That type of content isn't relatable to most of us. It automatically places the rapper "above" us. I don't feel like Cole and Lamar is "above" me when I listen to them. One of my all-time favorite acts is Little Brother because of this. I've actually BOUGHT all of LB's/9th Wonder's projects because I wanted to support those dudes. Anybody who is a fan of LB is probably a fan because of how relatable and down to earth those cats are.

A bigger question I have is why aren't there more Lamars and Cole's in the mainstream? They are selling really well right? Whenever the topic of "rappers with substance" comes up, these are the only 2 that really come up. Wouldn't it be a smart move for labels to invest in artists with similar content and energy as these 2? The masses are literally begging for more substance by financially supporting the only rappers who provide it!!!!

Sadly, maybe I just answered my own question in the thread title.

Young, aspiring rappers see Cole and Lamar in the extreme minority as far as making it big in the rap game and copy what they see saturating the mainstream outlets, which is microwaveable, carbon-copied trash. They see waaay more Fetty Wap's and Lil Yachty's than Cole's and Lamar's.

 

[Jean Jacket]

You know why?

We don't push our own platforms and venues like the days of the Apollo Theater.

Black entertainment has been vertically integrated and therefore created a vacuum in places where creativity and energy thrive (Black Communities) because everyone is looking for mass appeal. Hip Hop is universal now. Koreans hate Black people but have whole trap rappers with bootleg Mike Will beats. We will start making pivotal music once we start naming names and shutting the weak imitators down.

 

[Drip Bayless]

Music with substance tends to have more replay value. People will prolly be listening to Kendrick albums 10 years from now, don't know if you can say the same for an artist like Future who's music has a much greater impact in the moment.

 

[SunZoo]

In general that is going to take a level of skill and dedication, a lot of these kids ain't trying to master the craft, it's a hustle...a way to participate in what they are being told is "Hip Hop" when it's really just the music industry. If rap music is what is being called "Hip Hop" these days, your only way to participate is to either consume the music or create the music for consumption. So you have a lot of people who are rapping because that the only way they see in, when that may not be their forte.

 

[Lil Bape the PostGod]

if everyone was j cole and Kendrick....lil yachty would be the one breaking records right now...and youd be even more upset

 

[rbksNgirbauds]

Kendrick gets no play from me today. Kendrick won't get no play from me 10yrs from now either, really don't understand why he keeps getting used as the standard, his music has just as much replay value NOW as a Young Thug's will 5 years from now.

Yall stuck in the 90s nikkas acting like that music of "substance" from back then is getting play by these young kids today, well news flash, ITS NOT. Only nikkas listening to that shyt are nikkas that were listening to it then, and that cycle will repeat for the next era, and the era after that. So how isn't that music just as microwavable and for the moment? Don't answer that, its a rhetorical question.

And not to mention, whose to say what is substance and what isn't, that's WHOLLY subjective bruh.

Yall hip hop elitist are so fukking lame at times.

 

[DaKidFromNoWhere]

nikkas want an easy dollar so they go the easy route. No need to get technical about it.

 

[Turbulent]

Chronic 2001 gets way more play from me than The Sneak Attack from KRS.

Some album with "light substance" get lots of play (doggystyle, muddy waters, etc) just like some albums "with substance" (death certificate, lets get free, etc). Both sides have album that sell a lot, both sides have classics that still get play.

Bottom line is production, delivery and vibes (which content has a big effect on).

 

[The Intergalactic Koala]

Its a hustle...point blank period. Dudes would rather settle for a fukk contract to put out garbage vs trying to perfect their craft. The grim reality is that it's going to get worse for hip hop heads as the demographic of fans will pass over the substance in not only hip hop but music in general. Hip Hop heads are going to be like old jazz heads wishing for those yesterdays because the game is geared towards young, ignorant, and impatient...rather than the teachers, leaders, and enthusiasts. I'm honestly over the shyt because I know the expectant outcome as time progress.

Either you can venture out new genres, start digging the bandcamp feeds, or just be stuck in the past because this is only the beginning of the end. Sorry to say it, but once the industry skipped over the "college freshmen" era of hip hop:

to this era:

The writing was on the wall for me.

 

[CrimsonTider]

Music with substance tends to have more replay value. People will prolly be listening to Kendrick albums 10 years from now, don't know if you can say the same for an artist like Future who's music has a much greater impact in the moment.

The logic of this post is all types of off.

What substance artist 10 years ago music is still getting played today?

I bet you can throw on Duffle Bag boy and shyt like that now and have everyone vibe out to it

 

[BO BARON]

Future the only mumble rap rapper that makes timeless music dude is a icon

 

[Monsanto]

I hate current rap fans, if it's conscious it equals a standard of the medium. What happened to dope raps?

I don't listen to Sean Price, Roc Marciano or Earl Sweatshirt for consciousness, they make dope raps. But quality of music is determined by sales these days. OP, you are part of the reason why Rap is the way it is.

And consciousness is cool, but what new topics or new views are we seeing from Kendrick and Cole? Rhetorical, it's the same retreading of the past only done during a hyper mainstream trap era.

People still love Dipset because they made great rap with great beats, they didn't need conscious songs to get a buzz. They were fly, and their music had their swag on it.

I don't feel Kendrick, Chance and Cole for that very reason. They feel created, their enthusiasm doesn't exist in their content.

 

[010101]

name a conscious rapper that touched 9figures¿
aubrey will out earn cole & k. overall off pop appeal like it or not

*

 

[010101]

it's about selling the fantasy of a lifestyle
it's aspirational music
& most don't aspire to struggle and existential angst

*

 

[Black Cobain]

Every musician does it for the money, what makes money nowadays is mumble rap

The beauty of living in this decade is being able to stream and find millions of artists for free, if you want substance you can look for it yourself and directly support artists

Look at Uzi, he's very self aware about how hollow his shyt is: